Abhiroop Das
In Netflix’s ‘Olympo,’ tangled in the mystery of the sports industry’s dark underbelly lies a complex thread of romance and friendships. When numerous athletes connect at HPC Pyrenees in pursuit of greatness, sparks are bound to fly and turn into either chemistry or enmity and sometimes both, all coalescing in the chaos that unfolds. At the heart of the narrative lies Cristian and Amaia’s relationship. Although the two start out on a strong footing, their personal issue begins to eat them from the inside, and a lack of communication begins to visibly strain their relationship. With the arrival of Olympo onto the main scene, their priorities begin to change, and their dynamic begins to resemble a roller-coaster ride. The season finale ends with the couple’s fate hanging in thin air. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Amaia and Christian’s Love Story Continues But on Shaky Grounds
Cristian’s relationship with Amaia hits a crisis point following her accusations that he, along with several other athletes at HPC, is doping. Her actions trigger a facility-wide doping test, which uncovers the secrets of many. However, Cristian is not one of them. Seemingly proven to be clean, he confronts Amaia, attacking her insecurities and calling her the worst girlfriend ever. This echoes Fatima’s words to him, and he soon enters a sexual relationship with her, further deepening the chasm between him and Amaia. After a period of reflection, the pair reunites in Episode 7 of the show, promising to forgive each others’ mistakes and start afresh. However, the season finale tells a different story. Amaia’s decision to use performance enhancers for the trials challenges their relationship yet again.
Over the course of the narrative, Cristian’s character undergoes a significant transformation, both physically and psychologically. After his stint with Olympo, which he does in order to build his strength and physical ability to match and eventually surpass his brother at Rugby, he quickly discovers that the drugs come with their own share of side effects with the potential to debilitate him in the long run. As a result, he quits their sponsorship and begins to rebel against their oppressive systems, joining Zoe and Roque in the campaign to expose their truth. He comes clean to Amaia and begs for her apology, expressing that throughout his highs and lows, he only thought of her. Amaia asks for forgiveness, too, and the two reunite, promising to face their problems together.
With the newfound support from her friends, Amaia stands more confident than ever in taking Olympo down, but her plans come at a heavy cost. Amaia is the first to make note of the potential doping scandal and challenge HPC’s narratives even when it destabilizes her entire athletic career. Nuria, who now outclasses her Amaia, refuses to accept her as her duet partner. This is revealed to be a ploy by Olympo, who aims to break down the star artistic swimmer and make her depend on their drugs. Amaia’s insecurities, which are amplified by her mother’s demand for perfection, force her on the path of darkness, and upon taking Olympo’s drugs, she quickly regains her position as the star of her team. Right after her performance, however, she locks eyes with Cristian, who looks heartbroken at her apparent betrayal of the cause.
Amaia and Cristian’s Different Trajectories Threaten Their Relationship
Amaia and Cristian’s relationship is initially depicted as that of the perfect couple, as remarked by Nuria in the first episode. While Amaia is the best at her sport, her partner suffers from his share of insecurities due to not having the build and strength required to excel as a rugby player. While the two think of themselves as a team, the recurring cracks imply deeper issues in their dynamic. Despite their similar pursuits, Cristian feels that she can never understand him, as shown by his decision to hide his exit from HPC till the last minute. Their distance continues to widen when he intentionally lies to her about his enhancements and instead begins a life of indulgence, going as far as to cheat on his partner.
Cristian’s eventual reconciliation with Amaia itself is based on lies, as he only returns after getting rejected by Fatima, who reveals that she did everything as a way of weakening her competition. The duo, then, only comes together as a way to fill each other’s loneliness. The promise of love and trust is long gone, as symbolized in the scene’s juxtaposition with Roque and Sebas having sex after the former lies about the contents of Olympo’s pinkwashed promo video. The mounting insincerity and distance culminates with Amaia choosing to fall for Olympo’s trap. For success, she sacrifices her hopes for a pure relationship with her partner, as their values now stand at odds. Her previous wish to go back to how things were before any of this likely remains a pipe dream.
Read More: Where Was Olympo Filmed?
